‘I am so proud of the show and the team who have made it this season,’ Cowell said.

‘Our main commitment will always be to find great talent, and let’s not forget, we are now days away from our first live shows. The gloves are off. Expect fireworks.’

Fox’s Mike Darnell added: ‘This season, Simon and the producers of The X Factor took an already strong show and made it absolutely fantastic.’

The show, which is about to enter its live stages, currently features Britney Spears and Demi Lovato on the panel alongside Cowell and record producer LA Reid.

The two singers joined the line-up after previous judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger – currently a judge on the UK version of the show – were both dropped from the panel.

News of the show’s return has put paid to rumours that Cowell was planning to re-join the panel of the UK version, which currently features Scherzinger, Gary Barlow, Louis Walsh and Tulisa Contostavlos.

Viewing figures for the current series have been lower than in previous years, with the show being beaten in the ratings by Strictly Come Dancing for the past three weekends.

Saturday night’s show was watched by an average audience of 8.6m compared to the 9.9m viewers who saw Strictly.